Wear parts are commonly attached along the lip of an excavating bucket or the digging edge of other excavating equipment (such as dredge cutterheads) to protect the equipment from wear and enhance the digging operation. The wear parts may be excavating teeth, shrouds, or other wear members. These assemblies typically include a base, a wear member, and a lock. The base is fixed to the digging edge, and the wear member fits over the base. The assembled base and wear member cooperatively define an opening into which the lock is received to releasably hold the wear member to the base.
Wear members for excavating equipment are commonly subjected to harsh conditions and heavy loading. Accordingly, it is desirable for the locking arrangement to be strong to effectively retain the wear member to the equipment, and also easily manipulated to permit removal and replacement of the wear member in the field. The lock is usually in the form of a pin that is driven into and out of the assembly with a large hammer. Nevertheless, many different lock arrangements have been used in the past to secure wear parts to excavating equipment with varying degrees of success.